


A White Lie Affair

by dawninthemtn



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Background Crylo Ren, F/M, Fluff and Humor, High School Reunion, Mistaken Identity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-24
Updated: 2019-07-24
Packaged: 2020-07-17 22:48:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,301
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19964500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dawninthemtn/pseuds/dawninthemtn
Summary: When Ben gets unwittingly roped into attending his friend's high school reunion, he gets mistaken for a former classmate who had once suffered serious humiliation at the hands of the beautiful Rey.





	A White Lie Affair

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AlbaStarGazer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlbaStarGazer/gifts).



> For AlbaStarGazer, based on this twitter thread - https://mobile.twitter.com/AlbaStarGazer/status/1146210832122073088
> 
> I took some serious artistic liberty with the prompt, but I hope you enjoy it! And thank you for giving me the chance to re-watch (and re-cringe at) the classic "I Choo Choo Choose You" episode of The Simpsons. I also stole the mistaken identity plot element from one of my favorite 30 Rock episodes.

Ben Solo looked out the passenger car window as the buildings grew further apart. Skyscrapers were replaced by strip malls. Parking garages were replaced by big box retailers. Apartment complexes were replaced by neighborhoods with cutesy names engraved on boulders.

His work colleague Armitage Hux had been coy all week about the party he wanted Ben to attend with him, and Ben was beginning to suspect why that was. He looked over at Hux in the drivers’ seat, who was staring determinedly out of the windshield.

Ben broke the silence that had sat between them for a good thirty minutes.

“Hux, why are we in the suburbs?”

“It’s where the party is.” Hux checked his phone’s navigation and turned left at a sleepy intersection.

“What kind of a party is clear out here? What even is this place?”

“This is my hometown.”

Despite working together for a number of years, Ben didn’t know all that much about the person he would consider his closest work acquaintance. They mostly talked about work at the office, and on the occasional weekend, they went out to bars or parties. But it wasn’t like they were talking to each _other_ during those outings.

“You’ve never struck me as a small town boy.”

Hux took his eyes off the road to give Ben side-eye. “There’s 100,000 people living here. It’s hardly a small town.”

The GPS indicated a final turn, and they pulled into a Radisson Hotel.

“So what is this?” asked Ben drily as Hux hunted for a parking spot. “Retirement party? Your grandparents’ 50th anniversary? Bar mitzvah? Wedding reception?”

Hux mumbled something as he parked and killed the engine.

“I’m sorry, what was that?”

“I said, it’s my high school reunion.”

“You brought me to your high school reunion?” 

“What? Plus-ones were allowed.”

Ben gritted his teeth as he reluctantly climbed out after Hux. “Pretty sure they meant significant others. Hux, I didn’t even go to my own high school reunion. Why the hell would I want to go to yours?”

“Oh, come _on_.” Hux sounded desperate. “Just find the bar, take a seat, and chat up some desperate woman. How is that any different than any other Saturday night?”

“In this town? They’re probably already married with kids.”

“Even better. Nice and bored. Show ‘em a good time.”

“You’re sick.”

“It’s already been going on for an hour,” said Hux, glancing at his watch. “We won’t stay all that long. When we get back to the city, we’ll still have plenty of time.”

“And why did you come in the first place? If you had friends you were that excited to catch up with, I don’t know why you brought me.”

“I, uh, didn’t really.”

Ben glanced over at Hux, who was nervously fidgeting with his tailored suit jacket.

“Ah, I see what this is,” said Ben, rolling his eyes. “You can’t resist the opportunity to show off.”

“I’ve accomplished what I set out to do when I graduated,” Hux hissed back. “I have reasons to be proud of where I am.”

“Former loser flaunts success at reunion. I’m familiar with the trope. I just didn’t think anyone was actually that pathetic in real life.”

Hux didn’t have a chance to respond as they entered the hotel ballroom, flanked by a large sign that read “Aloha Franklin High School Class of 2009,” as they were immediately accosted by two smiley women holding brightly colored plastic leis.

“Wanna get _lei’d_?” one of the women asked Ben, reaching up to drape it over his head.

“No.” Ben glared at the woman, whose face and arm both dropped immediately. Next to him, Hux allowed himself to be “lei’d” as he showed the other woman his email ticket confirmation.

“Armitage, so good to see you,” cooed the woman. “It’s been too long.” Ben noticed that she hadn’t addressed him by name until she saw the phone screen. The woman gestured at a table next to them. “You can write your nametags here. Enjoy!”

“Where’s the bar?” asked Ben. The woman pointed towards the back of the ballroom, where a garish tiki hut had been set up. Ben stifled a groan.

Ben turned to Hux, who was using a Sharpie to write “Armie Hux” on a sticker nametag.

“I’ll leave you to your peacocking, _Armie_ ,” he said. “You’ll know where to find me.” Ben stormed off before Hux had a chance to protest.

Unsurprisingly, there was a healthy line to get to the bartender. Ben wasn’t impressed with the luau-themed drink options he could see listed on a chalkboard, but he still wasn’t going to complain about alcohol. He pulled out his phone to kill some time as he stood in line.

After a moment, he heard a timid woman’s voice.

“Kylo Ren?”

It took a gentle touch on his arm for Ben to realize that the woman was addressing him. He lowered his phone and looked down at the woman, who was staring right up at him. She said it again.

“Kylo?”

Ben narrowed his eyes in confusion.

“I’m sorry?”

The woman gave a little self-conscious laugh. “I’m sorry, you probably had no idea I’d be here. You may not even recognize me. It’s Rey?” She pointed at her nametag next to her lei. “Rey Niima? We did freshman year together, before I transferred.” She laughed nervously again. “Is it – I mean, would it be okay if I bought you a drink? I’d love a chance to talk for a moment.”

Her words were rushed, anxious.

“Uhh, yeah, sure, okay,” said Ben. Obviously the woman was mistaken about who he was, but she was cute, and there were worse ways to kill time than letting a pretty girl buy him a drink.

She moved into the line next to him, still babbling.

“I completely get it if you don’t want to talk, but I appreciate you letting me. You were always so nice.” She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, I sound idiotic. I’m just so shocked to see you here. I had hoped I would, but Finn Trooper told me they couldn’t even find you on Facebook to invite you. No one has heard from you since graduation. And then you show up, here you are, and you look…” She eyed him up and down. “You look really good.”

Ben was saved from having to come up with a response by the bartender asking for their orders. Rey paid for their fruity tropical drinks, and they stood awkwardly waiting for them to be made. Ben took the opportunity to take in the anxious woman before him, who was looking anywhere but at him.

She was tall-ish, thin, with wavy brown hair, a delicate nose, and stunning eyes. She was pretty- beautiful, really. Ben wondered why she was so desperate to talk to this…what was his name again? Kylo Ren? Was that even a name? Surely he had misheard.

The bartender held out their drinks, and Rey grabbed them before Ben had a chance to. She stalked to a table and plopped down, gesturing at the seat next to her. Ben sat and took his drink from her wordlessly, tossing the festive umbrella to the side. She tracked his movements.

“So…” prompted Ben.

“So,” said Rey, stretching out the vowel. “There’s just something I need to tell you.”

She paused. Ben stared at her.

“Oh you must know what I’m talking about,” said Rey, wringing her hands.

“Just tell me, what’s their name?” asked Ben.

“Who?”

“Our child. Boy or girl?”

Rey’s eyes got huge. “What are you talking about?”

Ben smiled. “Just a little joke.”

Rey was frozen for a moment before she smiled widely. She had dimples. “Gotcha. Very funny. No, no Immaculate Conception here.” She stirred her drink absent-mindedly before looking right at him. “I just wanted to apologize for, you know…the incident.”

“The incident?”

“I never should have humiliated you like that. I was young, dumb, and going through some really crappy stuff. But that’s no excuse.”

“I think you’ll have to be more specific. I’ve been humiliated lots of time.”

Rey bit her lip. “You’re telling me you don’t remember?”

Ben shook his head slightly but looked at her expectantly. He knew he needed to shut this down, but some sick inward curiosity was spurring him on.

“Oh my gosh, I’m so embarrassed. Here I’ve been thinking for thirteen years that I ruined your self-esteem, perhaps set you on a path of self-destruction, and here you don’t even remember.” She waved her hand at him. “I guess I have a wildly inflated sense of my own importance.” She took a giant gulp of her drink.

Did she want him to remember or not? Ben touched her wrist gently.

“It was a long time ago, Rey.” She lifted her head and he patted her hand encouragingly. “Of course I remember. Why don’t you tell me the story from your side and I’ll tell you if that’s how I remember it. I promise you won’t make me upset. We were all morons at that age.”

“Okay,” said Rey. “Okay.” She smiled nervously. “It started on Valentine’s Day. You remember the dumb carnation delivery fundraiser the student council did? The whole thing was an exercise in cruelty, really. Waiting all day to see if someone bought you a flower?”

Ben’s school hadn’t done anything like that, but he could well imagine the horror.

“Well,” continued Rey, “My friends were on the student council so I had a shift delivering carnations, and you were the only one in that class who didn’t get one. So I quickly jotted down a note on an extra flower and gave it to you.”

Ben nodded at her to go on.

“I think you maybe thought…I liked you? You started walking with me in the halls and writing me sweet notes.” Rey looked extremely uncomfortable as she told the story.

Ben felt a wave of compassion for the unseen Kylo. He wasn’t him, but he _could_ easily have been. Sure, he did all right in the women department now – money and muscles helped with that – but he had been awkward as hell in high school. If a girl like Rey had given him an inch, he would have surely taken a mile.

“Well, it all came to a head at the pep rally,” she said. “And I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you that part.” She grimaced. “I never should have shut you down and insulted you in front of the whole student body. But with everyone’s eyes on me and the mic in my face, I panicked. I should have had a calm, private conversation with you at another time. I’m so sorry.” She crumpled her hands in her face. “I’ve been wanting to tell you how sorry I am for so long. But I had to move soon after the incident, and I never saw you again.”

Ben patted her hand again. “That time was rough on all of us. I don’t think it’s fair to beat yourself up about something that happened so long ago. And as you can see, I somehow survived.”

But maybe Kylo hadn’t.

“You’re way too nice,” said Rey. “Finn told me after it happened that everyone could see the exact moment your heart broke. Right there on the jumbotron.”

Even though Rey was still being vague with the details, at this point, Ben was certain that Kylo hadn’t forgotten this incident, wherever he was. But the least he could do was put this poor woman out of her misery.

“It’s okay. I accept your apology,” said Ben. He waited until her eyes met his. They really were gorgeous eyes. “Let’s just not talk about it anymore, okay? It’s all in the past.”

Rey nodded, her head bobbing vigorously. “I really did like you, Kylo. Maybe not like _that_ , but you were so kind to me, and I didn’t even deserve it. And now look at you! I admit that when I asked Finn if you were coming and he said he couldn’t find you on social media, I did a little googling.”

Ben held his breath.

“And I found a Kylo Ren in an article about Doctors Without Borders working in Africa,” she continued. “There was no picture, but the details seemed to match. Is that you?”

Her whole face was glowing with admiration. Somehow Ben felt that finding out that he was a commercial real estate developer wouldn’t elicit quite the same response.

“Well,” said Ben. “Those orphans aren’t going to de-worm themselves.”

“Wow,” breathed Rey, sinking back into her seat. “That’s incredible. What a selfless way to use your education, especially right out the gate in your career. Think about the money you’re sacrificing to serve. It’s inspiring.”

“What about you?” asked Ben, desperate to turn the tables. “What do you do?”

She shrugged. “I work at Plutt’s Used Cars on 70th, near downtown. Not nearly as exciting. I would much rather hear about your work. Please tell me a story.” She put her chin in her hands and gave him her full attention.

Ben’s ultra-religious uncle already felt like Ben was on the highway to Hell, but now as Ben opened his mouth to answer, he knew he was printing and stamping his very own ticket.

“I treated a little boy named…Okonkwo,” started Ben, praying that Rey hadn’t read _Things Fall Apart._ “One day, uh, he fell into a river and got his arm bitten off by a crocodile. Some local villagers killed the croc and brought me the boy and his arm. I was the only doctor there, and I’m not supposed to perform that kind of surgery, with my experience level, but it was an emergency.”

“Did you do it?” Rey’s eyes were rapturous.

“I mean, what could I do? The Hippocratic Oath and all that. I was terrified, but now he has two working arms.”

Ben didn’t have the foggiest idea if the story he had just made up was even _possible_ , but he figured that based on the way Rey was absorbing every word, neither did she.

“That’s incredible,” she said, leaning back. “I bet you could go on all night.”

“I’d rather hear about you,” replied Ben quickly. “How did you end up at this reunion when you didn’t graduate from here? Are you…here with someone?”

“Sort of. I’m with my friends, not ‘with’ somebody,” she said, making air quotes. “Franklin was actually the first of three high schools I went to, but after freshman year I stayed in touch with some of my friends. My two best friends, Finn Trooper and Rose Tico, do you remember them? They’re married now, and they were on the planning committee for here, and asked if I wanted to come.”

“Why so many schools?”

“I, um, didn’t have a stable upbringing. I got bounced around a lot. Right around the time of the pep rally, I had just found out I was being placed in a new home. That’s pretty shitty to hear when you’re fourteen and had friends for the first time.”

Ben nodded sympathetically. He wasn’t someone people came to with sob stories, and he didn’t really know what to say, or if she even wanted him to say anything. She seemed desperate enough to change the subject anyway, since she stood up and noisily waved some people over.

“Look who showed up! Kylo came after all!”

Inadvertently ducking a bit in his seat, Ben watched as a black man and Asian woman came rushing over.

“Kylo Ren?” asked the man whose nametag read ‘Finn,’ holding out his hand for Ben to shake. “Wow, no one has heard from you in ages. I can’t believe how much you’ve changed. I barely recognize you. You look great.”

“Uhh, thanks.”

“So I assume you’re over here burying the old hatchet,” continued Finn. “Rey has felt so guilty about embarrassing you that way for so long.”

“Oh, um, it was nothing,” said Ben, waving his hand awkwardly. “I barely remember it.”

“Really?” asked ‘Rose,’ piping in. “I mean, the way you burst into tears in front of everybody, people talked about it for months.”

Ben sank deeper in his seat. He saw Rey wince.

“And then there was the original song you performed at our talent show, what, sophomore year? I don’t think we even told you about it, Rey. We were glad you were safely at another school.” Finn mimicked guitar playing and began singing in mock falsetto, “ _why, why, why did you make-a me cry.”_

“Shut up, Finn!” Rey stood and whacked him on the arm. “Don’t be a jerk. He doesn’t want to talk about any of that. Should we talk about your _Dragonball Z_ stage? No? Leave the poor guy alone! Plus--” She turned to Ben and gave him a giant smile. “Kylo is a hero. He’s a doctor saving children in Africa.”

For that crazy moment, Ben almost wished he actually were the painfully hapless Kylo, to be on the real receiving side of Rey’s admiration.

Finn and Rose both stared at him. Ben fought the temptation to grab at his hair to cover his ears, which were surely bright red. He settled for a subtle head shake.

“That’s awesome, Kylo,” said Finn, placing a hand on his shoulder. “And I’m just messing with you. Isn’t that the point of these stupid events? Laugh at the dumb teenagers we once were? Don’t think you could pay me to go back to high school.”

This, at least, Ben could agree with honestly.

A couple guys came over and surrounded their table, each clutching drinks.

“Hey Poe, hey Snap,” said Finn, greeting each. “It’s so great to see you guys.”

“You too.” The dark-haired guy labeled “Poe” nodded at Finn and then leaned in to give Rose a one-armed hug. “I was so happy when I saw you guys got married.” He acknowledged the small group. “It’s good to have the old O-line back together again.”

“Oh man, I haven’t even thrown a football in years,” said Finn. “But our baby boy is six months old now. That’s old enough to start teaching him, right?”

They all laughed. As they made small talk, Ben’s attention drifted to a few tables away, where Hux was talking to a couple of people. He didn’t really look happy, but then, he never really did.

He made a note to ask him about a certain pep rally later.

Hearing Poe address Rey brought his attention back to their table.

“It’s been a long time, Rey,” said Poe, staring at her.

“Almost ten years, I guess.” She looked mildly uncomfortable, and swirled her drink again.

Their words were simple, but seemed significant.

Poe stuck out his hand towards Ben.

“I’m sorry, I’m Poe Dameron,” he said. “You must be here with Rey. You’re a lucky man.”

Ben practically dropped Poe’s hand. “Oh, um, no, I’m-”

“No, we were just catching up,” explained Rey. “Don’t you remember Kylo Ren?”

Poe and Snap stared for a second. Finally, Poe clapped a hand on Ben’s shoulder.

“Of course! I just didn’t recognize you without your newsboy cap.”

_Newsboy cap?_

At that, Finn and Snap started laughing.

“I forgot all about that,” said Snap. “We even called him ‘Newsboy,’ remember? Good call on losing the hat, bro.”

“Well, you wouldn’t want to cover up that great hair,” said Rey, reaching up to ruffle it a little.

Ben clenched his fist to focus on keeping his face impassive.

“You’ve really filled out,” said Poe, eyeing Ben’s shoulders with a hint of jealousy. “If you had looked like this then, we could have used you on the team.”

Ben knew that Rey’s eyes were following Poe’s, and he was tempted to stand up and tower over the puny Poe, someone Rey clearly had some history with.

He turned to her and their eyes met.

“It was good to see you Poe,” she said, her eyes not leaving Ben’s. Ben nodded curtly at the guys, who stepped away.

“I need to get back to the committee,” said Finn. “We’re giving awards soon. See you later, Rey. And Kylo, we’re happy you came.”

Rose followed Finn, and Ben and Rey were alone again.

“You can go mingle,” said Ben against his own will. “You don’t have to sit with me. I’m sure there’s other people you’d like to see.”

“Oh!” said Rey, jumping up, chair scraping. “I’m sorry, I thought… I mean, you probably do, too. I’m sorry I was taking up your time.” Her eyes darted around wildly.

Ben stood up, too. Feeling bold, he took her hand.

“Please don’t misunderstand me,” he said. “I was enjoying talking to you.”

She looked up at him. “Me too.”

Without letting go of her hand, he sat back down, and she followed. He let go to take a sip of his drink.

“Tell me how you got into cars,” he said.

“It’s really not interesting,” said Rey, rubbing her wrist. “I mean, compared to you…”

Ben couldn’t resist the opportunity to touch her again, stilling her nervous hands.

“It’s interesting to me.”

Her face broke into a smile, and she launched into her story about learning mechanics, and her work restoring car trade-ins to prepare to sell.

She was completely unlike any girl he usually chatted with over drinks, and he was fascinated. He managed to keep the conversation focused on her- her likes, her hobbies, her interests.

She mentioned that one of her favorite bands was coming to town soon and how she wished she could go.

If he were Kylo, and any of this were real, he’d buy tickets immediately and ask her along.

Honestly, if he were Kylo, he wouldn’t even need to hide behind a concert invite. He’d ask her to get lunch with him that very next day.

If he were Kylo, he’d risk her rejection again and again, no matter how much she had humiliated him the first time.

She was worth it.

Someone’s voice came over the sound system, and Ben begrudgingly followed Rey’s lead as she turned her attention to the ballroom stage, where Finn was acting as emcee.

Ben clapped politely along as the reunion committee gave out some awards.

Rey leaned in and whispered to him. “So that’s what the survey was for.” Ben nodded like he knew what she was talking about.

“I don’t know so many of these people,” she admitted in between a couple awards, as the crowd laughed at some apparent inside jokes.

“It was a big school,” said Ben. “I bet most people don’t know. They’re just laughing along, wanting to feel part of the crowd.”

“For such a noble philanthropist, you’re kind of a cynic.” She grinned at him, and he just shrugged.

Her eyes followed Finn’s voice back up to the stage.

“And our final award is a last minute revision, as we have someone we didn’t expect to see.”

Ben’s blood ran cold.

“For greatest distance traveled, we have Kylo Ren, visiting all the way from Africa!” Finn pointed his microphone in the direction of Ben.

Everyone clapped while Ben sat frozen in his seat. He shook his head and waved away the attention, but Rey put her hand on his thigh.

“Go on up! I mean, if you don’t want the gift certificate, I’ll take it.”

“Come on up, Kylo,” prompted Finn from the stage. The clapping had stopped as the crowd awkwardly waited for Ben to just go up there and claim his award so they could all move on.

Ben walked up and took the award from Finn as fast as he could, barely raising his head to look up. On his way back to his table, he accidentally caught Hux’s hilariously wide eyes. He was thankful Hux had an almost-neurotic sense of self-preservation and would never create a scene.

He plopped back down next to Rey and tossed the hastily-Sharpied award and accompanying white envelope on the table.

“That wasn’t so hard, was it?” she asked, smiling at him. She took the envelope and opened it. “Hey, twenty-five bucks to Olive Garden, that was worth the thirty second walk, huh?”

He chuckled softly.

“You can have it,” he said.

“We could, you know, go together?” Her voice was slow and cautious. “I mean, I don’t know how long you’ll be in town, but it could be fun, right?”

Eating at Olive Garden wasn’t exactly Ben’s idea of fun, but spending any time with Rey certainly was.

“It would be,” said Ben softly. “But Rey, I-”

“ _You_ are not Kylo.”

Both Ben and Rey looked up at the harsh voice that cut into their conversation. The voice belonged to an extremely tall blonde woman named Phasma.

“Mind telling me why Kylo Ren accepted an award at our high school reunion even though he’s currently in Malawi?”

“You heard Finn,” said Rey. “He’s visiting from there.”

The woman glared at Ben.

“This is not Kylo,” she said. “I mean, he kind of looks like him, but Kylo is my cousin, and I saw him just a few months ago, at Christmas. I’m very confused as to why anyone would steal his identity? He might be fascinated to know as well.”

Rey and Phasma looked at Ben.

“What’s going on?” asked Rey quietly.

“Let me explain,” said Ben.

Rey held up her hand. “Nope, nope, I can’t. Who are you? Did you make up that whole story about the sewing the kid’s arm on? Are you a monster?”

“What?” Phasma looked horrified. “Kylo is a first year resident. I think he mostly gives out vaccines.”

Ben glared up at Phasma. “You’ve made your point. Can you give us a minute?”

Phasma rolled her eyes and stepped away.

“There is no _us,_ ” said Rey viciously. “I don’t like being lied to.”

“I just wanted to talk to you.” Ben was pleading, and didn’t care. “It all happened so fast and I thought that if you had a chance to apologize, you’d feel better. I never meant to let it go on…”

“Well, you did,” hissed Rey. “I’ve got to go.”

Ben grabbed her hand, and she gave him such a nasty look that he immediately dropped it.

“I’m sorry, Rey,” he said. She pursed her lips and stalked off.

“Tell your cousin I’m sorry, too,” Ben said to Phasma, who was still standing there, looking upset.

Hux came over and looked around curiously.

“What is going on, Ben? What was with you going up there?”

“Long story,” said Ben. “Have you finished showing off your watch? Let’s get the hell out of here. Or take your time. I don’t care. Give me your keys. I’ll be in your car.”

He took the bewildered Hux’s keys and stalked out of the ballroom. Someone called out to “Newsboy” but he didn’t acknowledge them.

In the car, he opened his Facebook and searched for Hux among his friends. Once he was there, he looked for Rey. She wasn’t one of his friends, but Finn was. From there, he found Rey. She smiled up at him from her profile picture. There wasn’t much else on her page available to him.

His finger hovered over the button to send a private message, but after a moment of reflection, Ben clicked out of the page.

Ben’s and Hux’s long drive back to the city was silent.

* * *

Ben was no stranger to spending the night talking to women and never seeing them again. He wasn’t a man who did relationships or attachments.

He definitely wasn’t used to still caring about a woman a week after an event. It was just his luck that the one woman he wanted to see twice hated his guts.

Hux had been surprisingly merciful, never asking any questions about their weird night at his reunion. At the office, though, Ben occasionally felt Hux’s quizzical expression on him. His distraction was causing him to make careless mistakes, and he knew his colleague knew that something was up.

“Hey, Ben,” said Hux one afternoon, poking his head into Ben’s office. “Are you going to that contractor planning meeting later?”

Ben hated how his friend sounded almost nervous to address him.

“Oh, yeah, yeah,” said Ben absently, rumpling his hair. “Where was it again?”

“Off 70th. I’ll resend the email.” Hux left without another word.

_70 th_. Something was going off in Ben’s brain. Hadn’t Rey mentioned something about working on 70th?

Eagerly, Ben googled “used cars Coruscant 70th Street.” A number of results popped up, and Ben scanned them until something looked familiar.

_Plutt’s_. That was it. Hux’s email came in right then with the meeting details, and Ben compared the addresses. It wouldn’t be a five-minute detour to go by the dealership.

A few minutes later, Ben left the office, envelope in hand.

* * *

Plutt’s wasn’t the nicest dealership, but it wasn’t the worst either. The parking lot was lined with everything from gleaming luxury cars in the front rows to aged clunkers in the back.

Ben had already been ambushed by two hopeful sales reps, who had both eyed his car and clothes with transparent interest.

Having successfully warded off their advances, Ben now sat quietly, staring at the front door of the dealership’s main building. Finally, he built up the nerve to get out and go inside, almost expecting to run into Rey immediately.

She was nowhere in sight. Ben approached an aged receptionist at the front desk, who gave him a giant smile.

“Welcome to Plutt’s. Can I help you?”

“Uhh, yeah,” said Ben, before swallowing. “Is there a Rey Niima who works here?”

“Service department,” the woman immediately answered, pointing out towards their parking lot. She reached for their phone. “I could call her…”

“No!” cried Ben. “I mean, that’s okay. Could you just see that she gets this?” He dropped the envelope on the desk, as well as a bouquet of flowers he had impulsively picked up on the way over.

The lady eyed the flowers and looked up at Ben. He felt x-rayed as she looked at him.

“You bet I will,” she finally said.

“K, well, um, thanks.” Ben practically ran out of the room and into the safety of his car. He drove off before he could even see if Rey ever emerged from the garage.

* * *

The next four days were agony as Ben checked his phone again and again. Every time it _pinged_ with a notification, he practically dove for it, but was always disappointed when it was a client, or a news push alert, or even worse, a friendly check in text from his mother.

He looked at the draft of the note he had typed up on his computer the day of the dealership more times than he could count, making sure he hadn’t gotten anything wrong, or maybe mistyped his phone number.

_Rey,_

_I understand if you don’t want to see me, so I’m leaving this note instead. My name is Ben Solo. I work at First Order Development. It’s not exactly saving orphans, but I like what I do. My profile is on the firm’s website if you want to look me up. I’m truly sorry for lying to you. I just wanted to get to know you. I really enjoyed my time with you and have regretted messing it up every moment since. If you’re at all inclined to give us another try, please use the ticket I’ve attached. I’ll be there. If not, I’ll sit alone and never bother you again. I can handle being humiliated on yet another jumbotron (too soon?) if it means there’s any possibility I’d see you._

_Sincerely, Ben Solo 555-525-3283_

The concert they had talked about at the reunion was that night, and Ben hadn’t heard from Rey at all. He had left the ticket, so it was up to her to attend or not, but in his most optimistic moments, he had hoped she’d at least text him beforehand.

Ben finished up his work for the night, and headed to the arena early. He took his seat in the mostly empty crowd and took a breath, attempting to settle his nerves for what could be a long night of lonely waiting.

The opening act still hadn’t taken the stage when Ben felt a hand on his sleeve. He looked up and practically jumped to his feet when he saw Rey standing there.

She was in dark skinny jeans and a low-cut black tank top. She looked stunning.

“You’re- you’re here,” sputtered Ben.

“Yeah, uh, hi,” said Rey. “Thank you for the flowers. And the ticket. Sorry I didn’t text or anything. I wasn’t sure if I was going to come.”

“I completely understand that.” The lights changed, and people cheered as it became clear the concert was starting. “Should we, um, sit?” He gestured down at their seats.

She smiled nervously, and followed his lead. They listened as the band sang their first couple numbers but it was too loud to really hear each other. Ben felt the unease between them like it was tangible.

After a while, she turned to him.

“Do you care about this act?” she asked. He shook his head. “Good. Should we step out for a minute?”

She got to her feet, and he followed her. Once they were in the quieter halls of the arena, she power-walked to a stand selling drinks and whirled on Ben.

“It’s not cool you lied, Ben Solo,” she said harshly.

He nodded and bit his lip, and let her continue.

“But I’ve been thinking about you since that night, and I’d regret it if I didn’t at least give this a chance. So you are going to buy us both drinks, and you’re going to tell me about yourself, the real you.”

Ben was more than happy to oblige.

* * *

The night ended up being one of the best dates Ben could remember. He loved watching this gorgeous girl’s happy smile and flushed cheeks as she bounced and sang along with the band that she loved. Sometimes her smiles were even directed at him.

At one point near the end of the set, the band settled into a quiet ballad, and Ben leaned into Rey, who had sat down to take a breather.

“Will I ever get to hear what actually happened at that pep rally?” he asked.

She grinned. “It’s not that great of a story, really. They were just doing this stupid thing where they went around and interviewed people about the upcoming basketball game or whatever it was, and they settled on me and Kylo. He had followed me there, of course, and sat by me. He asked me to go with him as his girlfriend, right there in front of everybody, and I was so embarrassed. Whoever had the mic held it up to me, and everyone in the audience ooh-ed and ahh-ed, and I lost my cool. I yelled into the mic that I never liked him, would never like him, and had only sent him a flower because I felt bad for him.”

“Ouch.”

“Yeah. He cried and ran off. It was kind of a thing. I even heard there was a rumor after that I had transferred as a direct result of it.”

He was silent, and took her hand.

“Do you think less of me?” she asked.

“I had basically already filled in the blanks,” he said. “And no, I think you’re pretty wonderful.”

She stared at him in the blue lighting of the arena. After a moment, she said, “Do you think they do a kiss cam here?”

“I think that’s just sporting events.” He leaned in closer. “Would you embarrass me in front of everyone?”

She answered him with a kiss.

* * *

“Well, I have his email address now,” Rey called out from the living room. “Phasma told me he doesn’t check very often, but I can at least try.”

Ben came in and sat down next to Rey on the couch, her computer still open on her lap.

“You know you don’t have to do this,” he said, kissing her hair. “You don’t owe him anything.”

“I know, but I just want this off my conscience. Just a quick apology.”

“Maybe he doesn’t even want to be reminded?”

Rey narrowed her eyes at him and set her computer down. “Why are you so against me reaching out to Kylo?”

Ben scratched his neck. “You broke the guy’s heart. He even wrote a song about you and performed it for the whole school. What if he’s been carrying a torch for you for all these years?”

“Do you really think I would be that easily swayed?” She smirked up at him.

“Well, I mean, he is saving African children’s lives.”

“ _Well,_ my boyfriend is spearheading the redevelopment of an entire city block.”

“We both know that’s not even close to the same thing.”

She chuckled and leaned into kiss him. “How about you make a donation to Doctors Without Borders, and I’ll make sure I clearly mention you in my email?”

“Consider it done,” he mumbled, kissing her back. “Honestly, I suppose I owe him.”

“Oh?”

“I’d never have met you if not for him.”

“Poor Kylo.” Rey giggled.

“Poor Newsboy,” Ben agreed. “Did he really wear newsboy caps?”

“Every day.”

“Damn.”

“Yeah.” She smiled, and kissed him again. “Trust me, I’m glad you’re you. I love you, Ben Solo.”

“And I love you.”

* * *

Somewhere, in a remote village in Africa, a be-capped man was teaching children to play guitar. His computer _pinged_ with a new email. He’d check it later.

“You kids want to hear a song that I wrote?”


End file.
